We were lucky to catch up with Emma Barnhouse recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Emma, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear from you about what you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry and why it matters.

It is easy to misunderstand nonprofits, especially those seeking to serve a broad audience. The DEC Network is a 501c3 nonprofit organization driving parity and economic impact by helping entrepreneurs start, build and grow their businesses. Since 2013, we have launched physical hubs, events, and education programs for startups, focusing on women and entrepreneurs of color. Born from a shared vision among small business and entrepreneurship advocates, The DEC Network believes investment in entrepreneurs is an investment in the community.

Emma, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Emma Barnhouse, and I have been with The DEC Network as the Event and Marketing Coordinator since June 2022. Shortly after graduating from Abilene Christian University with a bachelor’s in Communication, I was offered a job. Earlier in the spring of 2022, I was recognized and awarded for my research in corporate communications and pop culture rhetoric, which shaped what I was looking for when entering the workforce. I wanted to find an organization that worked with communities and individuals to grow their passions and create collaborative success.

People often forget the size of our staff behind the caliber of our work. Our team, 15 people at most, organizes and executes several large-scale events and programs throughout the year. These include the Women X Tech Summit, sponsored by Smart Business Concepts, and The State of Entrepreneurship, sponsored by Bank of America. We plan and produce Dallas Startup Week, sponsored by Capital One. We have five cohorts throughout the year and a mentorship program that is growing by the day. The DEC Network manages an SBA-funded program with dozens of community-partnered events a year and a network of approximately 20k immediately accessible through these different avenues.

It is easy to believe that a small staff will do small things–regardless of the size of impact–but our team is on the move! The DEC Network is 10 years old this year and is still growing and working to change the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Dallas with every collision and opportunity.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

This isn’t unique to my experience, but I had to unlearn perfection and achievement to adopt a spirit of excitement and courage. Throughout my young adult life and education, I was taught what would and wouldn’t matter to future employers–often reminded that results determine one’s value. To some extent, that is very true, but in another sense, there is an appreciation for the lessons learned from those mistakes, and you are only as valuable as the amount you try to do. All attempts should be made with a genuine effort, but it is okay to fail and learn from the experience. It is okay to accept responsibility for not meeting expectations and catalogue the lessons for a future attempt.

I also understand that not everyone is lucky to have a work environment that allows for that, but I encourage you to find a company culture that works for you and allows for grace and support.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

In the events business, the most effective way of growing your clientele is through attendance and conversation. Our team has talked a lot about how to grow our connections and make our services known to a wider audience. It starts by participating in community events, collaborating with corporate partners, and seeking opportunities with organizations that align with our goal and values of growth and parity.

We spend a lot of time and energy creating opportunities for organic collisions so something else we’ve discussed is our participation in our own events. Our staff will always find something that needs our attention during an event or program but has prioritized planning beforehand to make space to be present when the occasion calls for it. Something will always go wrong or need our time, but building relationships is the greatest way of growing our–or any–organization.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thedec.co/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedecnetwork/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedecnetwork
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thedecnetwork/mycompany/verification/?viewAsMember=true
• Other: https://vimeo.com/user136369696

Image Credits
All photos by Trés Cox https://www.seenbytres.com/